Financial Services Firms Must Adjust to New App-Centric Climate

Joshua Hoffman

December 2, 2015

Mobile application development platforms are becoming critical as financial services firms deal with a new operational reality. Smartphones and tablets are changing the way people work and collaborate, and it is vital that organizations shift their technological roadmap to create secure apps that foster process efficiency. Business process management software platforms are adjusting to meet these requirements, and getting on board this wave of innovation is key as many financial services entities lack the resources they need at the moment.

Infinite Convergence recently released studies delving into how different industries are handling mobile messaging, and its analysis of the financial services sector found that many firms need to step up their app creation and deployment processes to keep pace with user demands.

Responding to mobile requirements
The study found that while approximately 50 percent of employees at financial services firms use mobile messaging on a daily basis, just 38 percent of organizations are providing an approved app for such functions. This covers both proprietary and third-party apps, and shows that many banks and credit unions are simply letting their workers improvise, something that puts firms in an incredibly difficult regulatory position.

Anurag Lal, CEO of Infinite Convergence, explained that many financial services firms are not fully aware of how serious the mobile messaging problem is.

“We found that financial employees use mobile messaging more frequently for business communication than voice calling,” said Lal. “But many financial institutions still underestimate how prevalent mobile messaging is in their organizations, and they don’t have policies in place to address the same. They’re unknowingly exposing themselves to security breaches and leaving room for sensitive company information to be mined and compromised.”

Using BPM to get messaging up to speed
Messaging isn’t the only issue facing financial services firms trying to embrace mobility. Users are demanding apps that will meet a huge range of operational needs, and organizations that can update their app architectures quickly and efficiently can empower their users. Low-code techniques delivered through application delivery platforms can go a long way toward helping financial services firms address these demands.

BPM tools are increasingly giving financial services firms a built-in application platform that enables their business users to create apps for everything from messaging to case management. This lets your users resolve their own challenges when it comes to using mobile devices and does so within the confines of regulatory standards, minimizing risk.